Engineering students to help solve Cuba's water shortage

Four students from the University of Bristol will be flying out to Havana this week [Saturday 25 June] in a bid to improve the Cuban capital’s water supplies.

Four students from the University of Bristol will be flying out to Havana this week [Saturday 25 June] in a bid to improve the Cuban capital’s water supplies.

The Engineers Without Borders society at Bristol – which has more than 200 student members – has been working on a project called, ‘Optimisation and control of the urban Cuban water supplies’.

A substantial amount of research in the UK has been completed and to enable the project to progress further the students need to investigate the situation in more detail by meeting with their counterparts in Havana.

The students aim to get permission from the water company, Aguas de la Habana, to test their system and design in the District Metered Area (DMA) of the Polytechnic University of Havana or CUJAE, which serves nearly 5,000 people.

They will return to the UK with enough information to begin to optimise the water network within the DMA, including maps, evidence on areas of existing water leakage and details regarding installing possible prototypes.

The final aim of the project is to set up an efficient automated water network that not only detects leaks but also allows for optimal distribution throughout the existing Havana water system.

The project is a more focused follow-on from the University’s prestigious 2005 Mondialogo Engineering Award winning project, which researched into the optimisation of the Cuban electrical and water supplies.

During their visit the students will meet with the Havana local government, including the Ministry of Water Resources and the Ministry of Science, Technology and the Environment, and the Vice-Director of the Aguas de la Habana.

Robert Cottrell, Project Co-ordinator and President of EWB Bristol, said: “Nearly 70 per cent of the water pumped into Havana is lost through leakages, often resulting in areas of the city’s water supply being cut off for days.

“We hope to gain a deeper understanding of the environment and the culture where we are carrying out the project. This will include working with local residents to try to get a realistic idea of their needs.

“We will also set up a working space within CUJAE to improve communication once we have returned to the UK.”